YouTube Shorts can be hidden, but not fully disabled through official settings

YouTube does not offer a built-in toggle to turn off Shorts entirely. However, you can remove Shorts from your feed, hide the Shorts shelf, and prevent them from appearing in your recommendations on most devices. The method depends on whether you use YouTube on the web, mobile, or a smart TV — each platform has different controls.

If you want to stop seeing Shorts altogether, the most effective approach is to use browser extensions on desktop, adjust your feed preferences on mobile, or straightforward avoid clicking on Shorts content so the algorithm learns your preference. YouTube's recommendation system responds to what you watch, so consistent avoidance trains it to show you fewer Shorts.

Key Takeaways

  • YouTube's official settings let you hide the Shorts shelf from your home feed on mobile and web, but Shorts may still appear in search results and recommendations.
  • On Android and iPhone, you can remove the Shorts tab by long-pressing it and selecting the remove option, though it may reappear after updates.
  • Browser extensions like "Return YouTube Dislike" and "Unhook" can hide Shorts on desktop, but they require installation and may need updates when YouTube changes its layout.
  • YouTube's algorithm learns from your behavior — ignoring Shorts and watching longer videos trains it to recommend fewer Shorts to you over time.
  • Smart TV apps have no Shorts-hiding options, so your only choice there is to avoid the Shorts section or use a different app like Invidious.

Removing Shorts from your mobile home feed

On both iPhone and Android, the fastest way to reduce Shorts visibility is to remove the Shorts tab from your bottom navigation bar. Open YouTube, look at the bottom of the screen, and find the "Shorts" icon (it looks like a play button in a square). Long-press it until a menu appears, then tap "Remove" or "Don't show".

This action hides the dedicated Shorts tab but does not prevent Shorts from appearing elsewhere in the app. You may still see them mixed into your home feed, in search results, or in the "Recommended" section. If Shorts reappear in your feed after you remove the tab, you can report individual videos by tapping the three-dot menu next to them and selecting "Don't recommend channel" or "Not interested".

After a YouTube app update, the Shorts tab sometimes returns to your navigation bar automatically. If this happens, repeat the removal process. YouTube does not provide a permanent setting to keep Shorts off the tab bar across updates.

Hiding the Shorts shelf on YouTube's website

On a desktop or laptop, YouTube's home page often displays a "Shorts" shelf — a row of short videos below your main recommendations. You cannot remove this shelf through YouTube's settings menu, but you can collapse it by clicking the small arrow or chevron icon on the right side of the "Shorts" label. This hides the shelf temporarily, though it may reappear when you refresh the page or log back in.

A more permanent solution is to use a browser extension. Unhook and Return YouTube Dislike both allow you to hide Shorts, the Shorts shelf, and other YouTube sections you do not want to see. Install the extension from your browser's store, open its settings, and toggle off "Shorts" or "Hide Shorts". These extensions work on Chrome, Firefox, and Edge.

Keep in mind that browser extensions require maintenance. When YouTube redesigns its interface, extensions may break temporarily until the developer updates them. Check the extension's page every few months to confirm it is still being maintained.

Using YouTube settings to adjust recommendations

YouTube's recommendation system can be trained to show you fewer Shorts by changing what you interact with. When you see a Shorts video in your feed, tap the three-dot menu next to it and select "Not interested" or "Don't recommend channel". Doing this repeatedly teaches YouTube that you do not want Shorts content.

You can also visit your YouTube history and delete Shorts you have watched. Go to your account menu, select "History", then search for Shorts videos you watched and click the X next to them to remove them from your history. This prevents them from influencing future recommendations.

Another option is to adjust your "Search and watch history" settings. Go to your account menu, select "Manage all data", and turn off "YouTube Search History" and "YouTube Watch History". This stops YouTube from learning your preferences entirely, though it also means recommendations become more generic.

What does not work: Full disabling on official apps

YouTube does not provide a master switch to disable Shorts across the entire app. You cannot turn off Shorts in YouTube's settings menu, parental controls, or account preferences. Any claim that YouTube has added such a setting is incorrect — the company has resisted user requests for this feature for years.

YouTube TV, YouTube's paid subscription service, also does not offer a Shorts toggle. Shorts appear in the same places as they do on the free app. YouTube Premium, the ad-free subscription, does not hide Shorts either — it only removes ads from videos and Shorts.

If you use a smart TV app, you have no way to hide Shorts through the app itself. Your only options are to avoid navigating to the Shorts section or to use a third-party app like Invidious, which is a free YouTube alternative that does not include Shorts.

Alternative apps and workarounds

Invidious is a free, open-source YouTube front-end that strips out Shorts, recommendations, and other YouTube features you may not want. You can access it through a web browser or read mobile apps that use Invidious as their backend. The trade-off is that Invidious does not support all YouTube features — live streams, memberships, and some videos may not work.

NewPipe is an Android app that lets you watch YouTube videos without the official YouTube app. It does not show Shorts, ads, or recommendations. It is free and available on F-Droid, an alternative app store for Android. NewPipe does not work on iPhone.

If you want to stay on the official YouTube app but reduce Shorts exposure, consider using YouTube primarily on desktop with a Shorts-hiding extension, and using the mobile app only when necessary. This gives you the most control over what you see.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will YouTube ever add an official "disable Shorts" button?

YouTube has not announced plans to add this feature. The company treats Shorts as a core part of its platform and has ignored repeated user requests for a disable option. However, YouTube does respond to user feedback over time, so it is possible this could change in the future.

If I remove the Shorts tab, will it come back after I update the app?

Yes, YouTube often restores the Shorts tab after app updates. You will need to remove it again. This is not a permanent solution, but it is the quickest way to reduce Shorts visibility on mobile.

Do browser extensions work on YouTube's mobile website?

Most browser extensions do not work on mobile browsers because mobile versions of Chrome and Firefox do not support extensions the same way desktop versions do. You can use extensions on the mobile web version of YouTube through Firefox on Android, which does support some extensions, but iPhone Safari does not support extensions for YouTube.

Can I block Shorts using parental controls?

YouTube's parental controls do not include an option to block Shorts specifically. Parental controls on YouTube are designed to restrict content by age rating, not by content type. You would need to use a third-party app blocker or device-level restrictions to prevent access to YouTube entirely.

What happens if I report a Shorts video as "not interested"?

YouTube removes that video from your feed and adjusts your recommendations slightly. Reporting many Shorts as "not interested" trains the algorithm to show you fewer Shorts over time, but it does not prevent Shorts from appearing in search results or in other users' feeds.